The present disclosure relates to a method and system for identifying a purpose and context of a line of people waiting in a line or queue, and more specifically, identifying and conveying information regarding the line of people to the people in the line using mobile devices.
Typical waits in a common area, such as a line (also known as a queue) of people waiting for services, check-out, check-in, can be time consuming. Such common areas can include, for example, airports, or other modes of transportation, or shopping malls, or many other venues where people line up to enter, check out, complete a transaction or wait for services. For example, line or queues of people can include lining up to check out or complete a transaction such as in a shopping mall, or lines of people to check in, such as at a hotel, or to purchase a ticket, such as for a movie. Further examples of people forming lines or queues can include lines occurring at an airport or customs area. One common concern in many examples and venues it a person can enter a line and wait in a line, and not be sure if they are on or in the correct line, or waiting on the line only to find out that they are not on the correct line or queue. It is understood that the correct line is a line that the person intended to be in for reaching the destination point that the person intended. This can be frustrating, time consuming, and even cause more severe problems when meeting a time deadline or gaining entrance has a hard deadline, such as a flight time, causing a person expense, time loss, and missed opportunities.
Many situations or circumstances exist where an individual, person, or group of people, may approach long lines and be unsure which line they should join the line of people (e.g., at an airport during a major weather delay). It would therefore be beneficial for a system or process to assist in determining and/or confirm the purpose of a line to ensure that a person is on the correct line, or standing in the correct line, without having to walk to a front of the line to confirm the purpose/context of the line, or confirm with others in the line the purpose of the line, as other people on the line can also be mistaken as to the purpose of the line they are standing or waiting on.
For example, busy airports, train stations, entertainment venues, and other large events may all have long lines where people must wait their turn or wait in a queue. In one example, standing in a line can be troubling when a person learns they are in the wrong line after waiting a significant amount of time, resulting in loss of time for the person, as well as possible financial loss.